Miami Zooms In On Jai Lucas To Replace Jim Larranaga

Congratulations to Jai assuming this goes through

We’ve written a a couple of times about the importance of coaching and how to find a good one when it’s time to hire. A lot of fan bases want a home run, an established big name. Well, sometimes the best guy is little known or an assistant. We all have to start somewhere.

And in Miami’s case, it looks like they’re going the latter route and are focusing on Duke assistant Jai Lucas. This article suggests it’s a fait accompli but ESPN suggests it’s not done yet but that it’s likely.

Just 36, Lucas did a brilliant job at Kentucky and, if anything, a better job at Duke. He’s celebrated for his recruiting chops of course but also has built a reputation as a strong defensive coach.

Like Jeff Capel, he’s a born lifer - his father is John Lucas, who was an All-American at Maryland and who went to Durham Hillside.

As we said, he did a tremendous job at Kentucky and of course for Duke and he’ll be a tremendous head coach. Just 36, his future is immensely bright, whether it’s at Miami or somewhere else.